New Understanding
by Black Tribal
Summary: After a storm hits New York City, Oliver and Rita get caught in the middle. When a shard of glass hurts Oliver, Rita now has to find shelter and nurse Oliver back to health. Boundaries will disappear and a stronger friendship will be formed. M for safety


**Author's Note: This will be my first one-shot. I choose Oliver & Company because I will always have a place in my heart for what was my favorite movie when I was little. Even though the rating is M, that is only because of a certain scene in the story, so there aren't any lemons in the story.**

_**Disclaimer****: **_I don't own Oliver & Company.

**New Understanding**

A familiar orange kitten was currently walking across the docks of New York City with a smile on his face. The cute kitten's name was Oliver. Oliver grew up never knowing who his parents were and was pretty lonely in the early part of his life. Soon, though, that all changed when he met the street-wise and laid back dog, Dodger.

The adventure that ensued after he followed Dodger back to Fagin's barge would be one that Oliver would never forget for the rest of his life. From meeting an evil loan shark named Sykes and his two Doberman, Roscoe and DeSoto, to meeting a little rich girl named Jenny Foxworth and the family pet poodle, Georgette. The resulting events soon led to the gang being chased down a subway tunnel by Sykes in his car. It all ended with Sykes being hit by a subway train and getting killed instantly. Roscoe and DeSoto didn't make it out alive either. Oliver soon decided to stay with Jenny and keep her company, but when seeing how sad the gang got when he made the decision, the kitten made a promise to them that he would always stay in contact with them.

Oliver went on to live with Jenny and the gang decided to slowly help Fagin get back on his feet. Georgette was still jealous of Oliver living with them, but after a couple of weeks, she finally warmed up to the little kitten and realized that if he makes Jenny happy, then she she's happy.

Oliver started walking down the wooden steps of the dock and stopped to look at Fagin's barge. The barge looked a lot cleaner than he remembered. All the seaweed covering it was gone and the old boards looked like they were recently painted. Oliver grew excited. He was about to see the old gang for the first time in weeks! Unable to contain his excitement any longer, he ran as fast as his legs could carry him. "Guys! Guys! Its me, Oliver!" he shouted loudly. Oliver ran and jumped across the gap between the barge and the dock and went through the door. The kitten just about tripped on the steps and he skidded to a halt in the middle of the room. "Guys! I'm here!" He looked around, trying to find the group of dogs. He turned his head and looked in every direction. The room, where he made so many new friends, was as empty as an alley at night. Oliver felt his face fall and his ears droop. Oliver sat down and wiped a tear from his eye. He was so excited to meet Dodger, Rita, Tito, Einstein, and Francis, but they were gone. The kitten never noticed the figure standing behind him, slowly creeping closer.

"Gotcha!" Oliver let out a squeak as he was tackled by someone. Oliver rolled around, trying to get the figure to let him go. He wound up being pinned to the floor, the figure standing on all four of Oliver's legs, preventing him from moving. Oliver slowly opened his eyes. The figure standing over him was smaller than he expected, and he had tan fur. "Hahahahaha, I got got you now, hombre!" Oliver instantly recognized that voice. He knew only one person who had that Spanish accent. A huge grin appeared on Oliver's face. "Tito!"

The Chihuahua laughed again. "That's right, little kitty." Tito stepped off of Oliver, allowing the kitten to get back to his feet. Oliver then heard chuckling all around him. From the shadows appeared the ones he was looking for all this time. Dodger, Rita, Francis, and Einstein had grins on their faces. Oliver ran over to them with Tito right behind him. Dodger was the first to speak. "It's good to see you again Oliver."

He then looked at Tito. "Was greeting Oliver like that really necessary, Tito?" Tito shrugged. "Best thing I could think of." Francis scoffed. "But it's so barbaric." Tito walked over to Francis. "Ah, Come on Francis! You gotta loosen up!" "I'll 'loosen up', when you stop being so annoying!" Tito growled. "You wanna bend down and say that to my face?" Rita stepped between them. "Don't start fighting now, you two. We should all be happy that Oliver is here." She then scolded both of them. "My deepest apologies, Tito." The Bulldog apologized. "It's all good, amigo." Tito said. Rita smiled. "Good. My work is done." She walked over to Oliver. "I'm glad to see you again, kid." Oliver grinned and the two began to converse.

Meanwhile, Dodger was speaking with Einstein. "I think we should make another scavenger run." Einstein grimaced. "Do you think we should. I overheard from a radio in town that there's a big storm coming." Dodger frowned. "I know, but all we need is $30 to help Fagin." Einstein sighed. "I guess you're right. I just keep getting this feeling that something bad is going to happen." Dodger stared at the Great Dane. "I've never seen this side of you, Einstein." Said dog only smirked at him. "I have my moments." Dodger walked away from Einstein and jumped onto a crate. "Can I have everybody's attention?"

Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and looked at Dodger. "Before I start, I would like to thank Oliver for finally coming back to visit us after those many weeks." Rita, who was currently standing next to the orange kitten, patted Oliver on the back. Dodger continued. "It's good to see you again Oliver. Now back to business As the rest of you know, Fagin finally has an opportunity to get a part-time job lifting crates here at the docks. Even though I'm sure that all of us are confident that he will get the job, I think we should make another scavenger run to find more things for Fagin to pawn-off." Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

"Then it's settled. We'll split into teams of two, so that you can watch each others backs. Einstein and I will be the first team. Francis, you and Tito will be the second team." The two glared at each other, but a look from Rita made them stop. "And finally, the last team will be Rita and Oliver."

Oliver was surprised. "Wait, I'm joining you guys?" Dodger jumped off of the crate and walked over to the kitten with a smile on his face. "Of course. You're one of us, remember?" Oliver's surprised look was replaced with one of excitement. Dodger turned towards the rest of the group. "You got your teams. Now lets head on out!" Everyone cheered and climbed the steps and ran out the door.

Oliver stopped at the entrance to the barge, his face turned towards the sky and a look of uncertainty etched on his features. A gently pat on the back knocked Oliver out of his thoughts. He looked up at the Saluki standing next him with a reassuring smile on her face. "Come on kid. You're with me." Oliver smiled faintly and nodded. "Right." The brown colored Saluki and the orange kitten walked side-by-side down the docks and into the city of New York.

-x-x-x-x-

Oliver and Rita were currently searching an alleyway behind a jewelry shop. Oliver sat down on the ground with a look of disappointment on his face. "We've been searching for hours and we still got nothing." He whined. Rita walked up behind him. "Don't worry about it, Oliver. We'll find something eventually." She said reassuringly. A faint thundering sound made both Rita and Oliver look at each other, then at the sky.

The sky was covered in thick, dark gray clouds. Rita grimaced. "I think we've been out too long. We better get back to the barge before the storm hits." Oliver nodded. "Good idea."They both walked out of the alleyway and down the street. Oliver felt a few raindrops land on his head. Those few drops of rain soon turned into a light sprinkle, then into an average fall, then finally into a strong torrent.

Both Rita and Oliver ran down the sidewalks of New York at full speed, trying to get back to the barge. "Oliver!" The orange cat looked up at Rita. "I can't see anything! I think we should find shelter from the rain!" The wind picked up and Oliver was blown into her. "I thank that's a good idea!" Rita reached down and picked Oliver up by the scruff of his neck with her teeth. "This will make it easier to keep you close!" She said through a mouthful of orange fur.

She quickly ran down the sidewalk and made a left into an alleyway. She gently set Oliver back on the ground. Rita shouted over the rain and howling winds. "Help me find something to use to protect us from the rain!"Oliver quickly nodded and they both started to search the alleyway. A strong wind, amplified by the alleyway's close walls like a funnel, blew through the alley. Oliver dug his claws into the ground and tried to anchor his small form into the ground. He noticed a large shard of glass from a shattered window was on the ground and was shaking from the wind.

Meanwhile, Rita was laying on the ground and had her eyes closed, trying to keep dust from blinding her. Opening her eyes slightly, she too noticed the glass shard shaking on the ground. The wind picked up and blew harder than before. The shard was picked up by the wind and it flew towards Rita.

Rita froze. She couldn't move in time to avoid it. She watched, wide eyed, as the shard flew towards her. She closed her eyes and ducked down, awaiting the pain of glass cutting flesh. She heard a 'thump', then a small yelp. Realizing that she wasn't hit, Rita opened her eyes and looked around. Her gaze fell on a familiar ball of orange lying on the ground a foot away from her.

Her eyes widened. "Oliver!" She ran over to the kitten lying on his side. She gasped at what she saw. Across Oliver's back, their was a large laceration that went down his entire upper back to partly down his lower back. Their was a large amount of blood leaking from the wound, staining the orange fur around it. He was also unconscious.

Rita looked around frantically, trying to find something to stop the bleeding. Locating an old, discarded shirt on the ground a few feet away. She quickly ran over to it and tore the sleeve off of it. Running back over to the wounded Oliver, she placed the sleeve next him, rolled him onto it, then wrapped the ends together, creating a temporary gauze and tourniquet. She quickly looked around. "I gotta find shelter for the both of us." she said to herself. She had some good luck.

There was a large box located near a trashcan that was still in good condition. Gently balancing Oliver on her muzzle, since the gash was on his neck scruff, she walked over to the box and placed the wounded cat inside. She looked at the trashcan. Thinking that there might be something useful in it that she could use, she tipped it over.

What luck! A large quilt fell out of the trashcan. Rita grabbed the quilt and placed it in the box, then went back to the trashcan and took the lid and placed it on top of the box, providing a small roof for the box to keep rain from leaking in. Rita then slowly crawled into the box and laid down next to the still unconscious Oliver. She grabbed the quilt and pulled it over both of them for warmth. With the stress finally taking it's toll, Rita laid her head next to Oliver and promptly fell asleep.

A bright flash of lightning and a loud 'BOOM' awoke the startled Saluki. She groggily looked at her surroundings. The rain was still falling hard and it was now nighttime. Rita then turned her attention to the still unconscious orange kitten lying next to her. She leaned forward and started to lick the back of his head. "Come on kid, wake up." she said softly. A soft groan emitted from Oliver. He lifted his head up slowly and blinked away the sleepiness in his eyes. Oliver then looked around. He was in a large box in an alleyway with a quilt covering him. There was also a wet feeling on the back of his head and a warm sensation on his back, which was still hurting.

Then the memories of what happened earlier flooded into his head like a dam bursting open. He began to panic. "Rita!" Oliver quickly stood up and shouted, but a strong jolt of pain caused Oliver's legs to give out and he collapsed onto side. Rita quickly nuzzled the kitten's neck. "It's alright, Oliver. I'm right here." Oliver craned his neck and looked behind him. Tears began to form in his eyes, but they weren't tears of sadness, but tears of joy and relief. He threw himself and started to cry into Rita's shoulder. "Oh, Rita. When I saw that piece of glass flying at you, I didn't know what I would've done if you got hurt, so I jumped into it's path without thinking. You must hate me for making you worry." Rita was shocked. "What are you talking about kid. I wouldn't be alive if you hadn't jumped in front of me." Oliver looked up at the Saluki's smiling face with red and puffy eyes. "I'm forever grateful that you saved my life, Oliver." she leaned down and licked his tears away. "Now dry your tears. You don't need to cry over this. Plus, anymore stress might make the cut on your back re-open."

That was when Oliver noticed that there was a torn sleeve wrapped around him. The sleeve had some red stains on it. "You did all this?" Rita smiled and nodded. Oliver smiled again "Thanks." He then laid against Rita, allowing the warmth of her body and the beating of her heart to lull him to sleep. Rita grinned and laid her head next to him.

Not five minutes later, a loud growl is heard from Oliver's stomach. Oliver blushes slightly and sits up and places a paw on his stomach. "Maybe I should have eaten before I left." Rita lifts her head up. "Hungry, kid?" Oliver looks at her and nods sheepishly. Rita smirks, then looks outside the box. "At least the rain lightened up." She looked back at Oliver. "I want you to stay here. I'll go look for some food." The kitten nodded and lied back down while Rita got back up and walked outside into the rain. Oliver laid there and waited for Rita to come back.

After about half an hour of waiting, Rita appeared outside of the box, soaked to the bone and shivering slightly. She quickly shook of the excess water and crawled back into the box and covered herself with the quilt, her shaking now more prominent. She shot a sad look at the orange cat. "Sorry Oliver. I couldn't find anything for you to eat." She lowered her head. "I'm sorry." Oliver walked over and gave her a small lick on her cheek. "It's alright, Rita." The Saluki smiled. "Thanks, Oliver."

Her smile then faded when she realized something. "But we still need to feed you somehow. I know for a fact that kittens, like pups, require constant feeding, and you need nutrition to keep your strength up. Otherwise, the injury on your back will take longer to heal. Plus, the lack of food will make you weaker." Oliver listened to her and nodded.

They both laid down and began to think hard about what the cat should eat in order to keep his strength up and sate his hunger. Another growl emitted from Oliver's stomach, but this one was much louder and it hurt slightly. Rita clearly heard it and she became frantic.

_'What should I do? There's nothing around here for him to eat. I know he won't eat garbage, and rainwater won't cut it! What can I do! I mean, its not like I could...' _She lifted her head up with a surprised look on her face. _'Maybe I could.' _She looked at the kitten that was so busy thinking for a solution to their dilemma that he didn't even notice Rita. The Saluki blushed deeply at the possible solution. _'It's embarrassing, and it could change the way we look at each other, but his health is more important. I just hope he agrees.' _"Oliver?" The kitten turned his head and looked up at Rita, but he noticed the blush on her face and cocked his head in confusion. "What is it Rita? And why is your face so red?"

Rita tried to speak clearly, but her mouth felt dry. "I-I d-do have o-one idea." Oliver smiled. "You do? What is it?" The kitten said excitedly. Rita opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She whined quietly and looked down. _'Come on, Rita! You can do this!' _She looked back up at the orange cat. "I-I could..." Oliver signaled for her to continue. "I c-could...feed you..._naturally_." Oliver cocked his head in confusion. "What do you mean." Rita whined in disbelief. _'Of course. He's just a kitten.' _"What I mean...is that I could feed you...like how a mother would feed her child." She then nodded to her chest. Oliver cocked his head in confusion again.

Then, the answer struck him like a New York taxi going 80 mph. His eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, his jaw dropped, and a deep blush spread across his face. "You want me to do _that_?" Rita nodded, a blush still visible on her face. "I know it's embarrassing, but breastfeeding you would sate your hunger, and its the only option we have." Oliver nodded. "Can I have a moment to think it over?"

Rita nodded. Oliver looked down at the ground, a thoughtful expression.

_'Should I do it? I mean, I know its the only option left, but it's so embarrassing. We're just friends after all.'_ Oliver sighed. _'Alright, I got two options. I could let Rita breastfeed me and change the way we'll look at each other for the rest of our lives, or I could risk starving and possibly dying.' _Another loud and painful growl from Oliver's stomach answered his question for him. _'I guess _that_ answers my question. I just hope this works out well in the end for the both of us.' _Oliver looked back up at the Saluki. "I guess you feeding me is the best thing to do." Rita nodded, her blush intensifying. "O-Okay."

She picked Oliver up with her paw and placed him near her chest, since his back was still preventing him from moving. "W-whenever your r-ready." Oliver looked at her and nodded. Rita watched as Oliver slowly and hesitantly leaned forward and gently grabbed onto one of her nipples with his mouth. He then started to suckle softly like a newborn pup. It wasn't long before Oliver felt a familiar liquid flow into his mouth. Rita continued to watch Oliver drink her milk, a soft smile starting to form on her face. _'It's like he's my own child.'_

Oliver continued to suckle softly and drink her milk until he finally felt full and let go. Rita leaned down and licked off the milk that was dripping off his mouth. "You all done, Oliver." Oliver, with a small blush still on his face, nodded, a small smile forming on his face. "Yes, and thank you, Rita." The Saluki smiled. "Your welcome." The orange kitten then let out a yawn, the warm feeling in his stomach spreading across his body and relaxing his muscles. "Well Oliver, I think we should try to get to sleep again." Oliver again nodded and curled up into a ball and snuggled up against Rita, falling asleep immediately. Rita smiled affectionately and curled up around the sleeping kitten and pulled the quilt over them. Sleep overcame her instantly.

-x-x-x-x-

A beam of sunlight shone through the box and onto the face of the peacefully sleeping Saluki. Gently opening her eyes and letting out a large yawn, Rita awoke. She calmly took in her surroundings. The sun was shining and the air was cool and humid. Rita lifted up her head and smiled. _'Finally, the rain stopped.' _She then looked down at the still sleeping kitten.

She gently leaned down and gingerly licked him on the back and neck. "Wake up, Oliver, its morning." Oliver slowly opened his eyes and let out a cute yawn. He blinked his eyes a few times and then looked up at Rita. "Good morning, Rita." he said with a grin. The Saluki's smile grew. "Good morning, Oliver. Did you sleep well?" Oliver nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Even though the storm last night was terrible, I haven't slept that good in a long time."

His smile then turned into a frown and a small blush formed on his face. "Listen, Rita, about last night. What happened-" "Doesn't change our friendship." The Saluki interrupted "Oliver, I nursed you because we had no other option. Even though we'll probably look at each other a little differently, we will always be great friends." Oliver smiled warmly. "Thanks Rita. Thanks for everything." Rita leaned forward and gently licked the kittens face. "Your very welcome, Oliver." She then stopped licking him and looked outside. "It looks like the rain stopped. We'd better get back to the barge. Everyone must be worried sick." Oliver nodded, but then a thought popped into his head.

"How will I get there? I still can't walk without my back hurting." Rita only smirked. "Ain't it obvious? I'm going to carry you." She gently lifted Oliver onto her back and then she slowly crawled out of the box. Once outside, she slowly stood up. "You better find a comfortable position. I don't want you to fall off." Oliver said a brief "Okay." before shifting himself so that he was laying on her back with his legs spread out and his head facing forward. "Alright, I'm ready." he said enthusiastically. Rita grinned and she gently started walking out of the alleyway onto the sidewalks.

Rita walked with Oliver on her back for what felt like almost an hour, both of them gaining a lot of stares and questioning looks from people walking by. When she walked by an alleyway that was populated by some stray dogs, she had to deal with them giving her cat-calls and mocking her for caring for a cat. She only glared at them and continued walking.

"Rita?" The Saluki stopped and looked at the kitten on her back. "What is it Oliver?" Oliver smiled. "You know, I had a dream last night." Rita cocked an eyebrow and smiled. "Oh? And what was this dream about?" Oliver's smile grew. "I dreamt about my mother." Rita smiled warmly. "That sounds like a _great_ dream." Oliver then smirked. "You want to know the best part?" Rita nodded. "When my mom was standing in front of me and started telling me that she would always be with me and would always take care of me, she started to turn into someone else." Rita raised an eyebrow. "You want to know who it was she turned into?" Rita nodded. "She turned into _you._" Rita's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "_Me_?" Oliver nodded. "_You_. I think the dream was telling me that you are like a mother to me." Rita smiled softly. "And I would proudly be a mother-figure to you." Oliver licked her cheek. "Thank you."

The duo, after another hour of walking, well with Rita walking and Oliver riding, finally arrived at the docks and after walking down the steps, Fagin's barge. They stopped at the entrance.

Oliver spoke up. "Do you think this all happened for a reason?" Rita turned her head to look at Oliver. A soft smile on her face. "You know, Oliver, I think this all _did_ happen for a reason. The question is, are you glad this all happened?" Oliver returned her soft smile with a warm smile. "Yeah, I'm glad all of this happened. And I wouldn't change it for anything." Rita's smile grew larger. "I'm glad too Oliver."

A thought then popped into her head. "Do you really think of me as a mother-figure?" Oliver smirked and then licked her face. "Of course I do." They both smiled at each other and then walked into the barge where their friends were waiting.

**Author's Note: Whew! Took me forever to write this.**

(Remember to R&R)


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